Opportunity For More Green Infrastucture In Jersey City - Public Meeting Web Nite Jan 15th

Join SJC and group of other community stakeholders, including city staff, all working together to help shape a Long Term Control Plan that will help Jersey City navigate stormwater flooding issues, CSO’s and climate change impacts to the city, now and in the future. Please participate in the discussion and become educated about various solutions being considered and decisions that must be made by June .

While more Green Infrastructure is on the table as one of the alternatives, as are a combination of Grey Infrastructure solutions, the Mayor and the JC Municipal Utilities Authority (JC MUA) need to hear feedback from the public.as to which costs and which benefits matter most to you, and which quality of life advantages we should be considering when making these decisions - environmental, social and economic.

If your schedule permits, engaging in these START meetings will bring your ideas together with ours - we all need to row together to bring good solutions forward and START is one of working groups in JC where that is happening. Meetings are not always in the evening but this one is so for folks that have day jobs this is hopefully more convenient for you !

Public Meeting Of Shade Tree Committee Mon Nite City Hall

In case you missed this message last month we are sending it AGAIN ! The good news is that this month it is not a Caucus Meeting and the Public Gets To Participate - so if you care about TREES in JC start attending these meetings please ~.

Message from last month -

Join Sustainable Jersey City at City Hall 7pm for the Inaugural Gathering of the NEW Shade Tree Committee (STC)! This group is intended to help shape urban forestry policy in Jersey City and along with the City’s new Forester, public participation will bring momentum to their work 👍

Please come out to support this initiative - there will be sub-committee activity and certainly more work than this group can handle given all the issues that persist with our Trees and the deteriorating Tree Canopy in Jersey City. Come take a listen, learn about the challenges, see where you can get involved to make a difference ~

When you arrive at City Hall, ask the Security Desk for the SHADE TREE COMMITTEE meeting is being held in the “Business Administrator’s Conference Room”

Come with your concerns and ideas - we know you have a bunch, you’ve been sharing them with us for years !

There Is Still Time To Make a Green Resolution!

It is start of a new decade which means that it is also a great time for new greener beginnings. If the idea of taking on a cleaner and more carbon neutral lifestyle seems daunting you, try our easy, environmentally-friendly resolutions.

• Reconsider your paper usage.

  • While paper products are more environmentally friendly than plastic, we still use way too much. Before you take that paper bag or print out that memo, think about whether you need it.
    

• Turn off lights and devices when you are not using them.

  • Stake those energy vampires. If you aren’t using it, shut it down.
    

• Try second hand shopping, upcycling, donating or recycling your garment.

  • Fast fashion is bad for the planet. Consider purchasing previously loved quality goods or creating something new out of an older piece of clothing. If you need to dispose of your old garment try donating or recycling it, for example in any H&M store location.

• Bring your own reusable utensils.

  • Reusable bags, cups and lunch boxes go a long way toward reducing the amount of waste we create.

• Air dry your clothes

  • Not only it helps your clothes to last longer but it also saves energy and money

• Drive les

  • You can instead try to walk, bike, take public transit, car pool, etc. more often.

• Plan your shopping and reduce food waste

  •    If you are organizing a party and you are not sure how much food you will need, you can use a tool to help estimate how much food you will need based on your head count, e.g. Save the Food's Guest-imator and remember to freeze anything extra that won't last in the refrigerator.

• Use reusable shopping and produce bags

  • As much as plastic may be unavoidable in some industries, such as health care, bags seem to be going out of fashion. Stay in in mew decade by using reusable shopping and produce bags!

Happy greener 2020 to all!

Light Up the Holidays with Less Waste!

During the holiday season, between Thanksgiving and New Year's Day, Americans will generate 25 % more trash than within the same period of any other time of the year. Holiday food waste, shopping bags, bows and ribbons, packaging, and wrapping paper contribute an additional 1 million tons a week to our landfills. (U.S. EPA, 2016). Let’s be grateful, not wasteful this holiday season, shall we?

Stuff the Turkey, Not the Trash Bin

Holiday season panic...we all experience it twofold. First in the store: How much food do I buy? Are you sure that will be enough? Is this turkey big enough? And second time at home: Who is going to eat all of this? Where am I going to put all of these leftovers?! Millions of pounds of leftover food are thrown away every year. But there is a way to plan more accordingly and load off some of the stress with the pointless leftovers.

1.  Have an accurate head count to plan portions accordingly. If you are still not sure how much food you should buy, you can use a tool to help estimate how much food you will need based on your head count, e.g. Save the Food's Guest-imator.

2.  Purchase imperfect produce for cooked dishes, such as bruised apples for apple pie.

3.  Encourage guests to bring a reusable container they can bring leftovers home in or lend them yours.

4.  Enjoy your leftovers days after by creating new dishes like turkey soup or hot turkey sandwiches. If you are out of ides, get inspiration from websites collecting leftover food recipes, e.g. Save the Food or Love Food Hate Waste.

5.  Be realistic about the leftovers you can eat, and freeze the extra that won't last in the refrigerator. You can always defrost it based on demand!

6.  If you have any uncarved pumpkins left from Halloween, you can make a soup or a pie. Don’t know how to make a homemade pumpkin puree? It’s simpler than you may think!

Sustainable Holiday Gift Guide

We all know how difficult it is to get our close ones something they would appreciate. Something they don’t have yet, maybe even something they wouldn’t think of getting for themselves, yet something thast is not destined for a yard sale. Here are few tips on how to do all that without breaking the bank!

1.  Gift an experience! Invite people to do something they have never done before or what they really enjoy. Plan a weekend getaway, hit the slopes, go hiking, cross country skiing or snowshoeing. Enjoy a cooking, art or fitness class, visit a museum, or see a musical or theater production. But how to wrap this under a Christmas tree? Print personalized gift certificate!

2.  Gift a reusable mug, water bottle, plate, silverware, to go container, shopping bag, bulk fruit and vegetable mesh bags, etc. And if that doesn’t seem enough, you can make an ‘on-the-go kit’ filled with various reusable items!

3.  Give back to the community by donating to a non-profit organization in the name of a loved one or donate your time together helping out a local organization.

4.  Create, bake or craft unique gifts. Make edible gifts to share like breads, cookies, fruit & nut mixes, jams, jellies and herbed vinegars or olive oils and decorate a reusable jar instead of gift wrapping. Knit a scarf, crochet a hat or mittens, paint a watercolour, embroider or wood burn a design, carve a spoon or design your own jewellery.

5.  And if you decide to buy a gift that needs wrapping, consider saving money and using materials that you already have at home, such as old paper bags, washed jars from preserves or even cardboard boxes from rolls of parchment paper or foil to create original packaging. If you don’t feel creative or don’t have the time, it may be niftier to use a gift bag or a reusable elastic gift wrap which is not only easier to use than wrapping paper but also can be stored and reused next year!

For even more sustainability tips over the Holidays see EPA website.

Happy holidays full of joy and happiness from our SJC family!

With so much excitement surrounding many elements of Christmas, packaging and the recycling of it can be easily overlooked

Public Meeting Of Shade Tree Committee Mon Nite City Hall

Join Sustainable Jersey City at City Hall 7pm for the Inaugural Gathering of the NEW Shade Tree Committee (STC)! This group is intended to help shape urban forestry policy in Jersey City and along with the City’s new Forester, public participation will bring momentum to their work 👍

Please come out to support this initiative - there will be sub-committee activity and certainly more work than this group can handle given all the issues that persist with our Trees and the deteriorating Tree Canopy in Jersey City. Come take a listen, learn about the challenges, see where you can get involved to make a difference ~

When you arrive at City Hall, ask the Security Desk what room the SHADE TREE COMMITTEE meeting is being held - the public announcement read the “Business Administrator’s Conference Room” but that is a small conferencence room for a public meeting so may have been a misprint.